Sixers vs. Celtics: 3 key things for Philly fans to watch for

Sixers vs. Celtics: 3 key things for Philly fans to watch for

It seems like yesterday when the Sixers played a game that counted against the Boston Celtics. As we all know, their season ended against Boston in May when the Celtics knocked the Sixers out of the playoffs in the second round.

Now, five months later, the two teams start the season against each other at the TD Garden. Let’s take a look at the Celtics and break down what Sixers fans need to know

Boston is not the same team Philly played in May

In the playoffs last year, the Celtics didn’t have the services of All-Star’s Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. Both will be in the lineup tonight, which unquestionably changes things for Philadelphia.

Being able to play one-on-one defense at times may not be a great option as Irving and Hayward both know how to get to the basket against.

What Sixers coach Brett Brown can do is to use players like Robert Covington and have him constantly switch on either Irving or Hayward. Ben Simmons, who has shown the ability to be an underrated defender, can defend Jayson Tatum

In this situation, Covington would only switch on Irving if new starter Markelle Fultz can’t handle the job. If he can effectively guard Irving, Covington can play more as a wing defender, which in turns allows him to disrupt the Celtics when they attempt to use Al Horford in the high post.

Al Horford’s posting impacts Joel Embiid defensively

Joel Embiid is one of the best shot-blocking bigs in the NBA. Celtics coach Brad Stevens loves using Horford in the high post to allow his forward to utilize his outstanding court vision. Boston uses a lot of backdoor plays which allow Tatum and Jaylen Brown to cut for easy opportunities around the hoop.

What makes Horford even more dangerous is that he’s a great mid-range shooter. So having a dual-threat player like Horford can potentially hurt the Sixers, especially if Embiid gets in foul trouble.

So what does Embiid do to counter this? The fact he has an All-Defensive teammate in Covington on the floor with him is huge. If Philly’s guards (Fultz, T.J. McConnell, JJ Redick) can keep up with the Celtics guards, Covington and Dario Saric can play in the high post and Embiid can protect the rim to avoid the backdoor cuts.

If the Sixers can effectively guard on the perimeter, they can protect Embiid from getting in foul trouble from the Celtics’ backdoor chances.

Markelle Fultz has to become the go-to-go option down stretch

What the Sixers lacked last year in the playoffs was a go-to scorer late in games. Even though Simmons is the most talented player on this roster, he doesn’t strike fear in defenses scoring the basketball from outside the paint. Redick has to come off screens to be effective. Embiid can score but the ball has to get to the post. The rest of the roster won’t strike fear into the Celtics defensively late in games.

Because Marcus Smart is a poor free-throw shooter, he can’t be in close games late. So that leaves Irving on the floor to play defense. While an exceptional offense weapon, the Celtics’ star guard isn’t the best defender. In turn, the Sixers need to exploit him when Philadelphia has the ball.

The best option is to have Fultz take Irving off the dribble on a regular basis. With the 20-year-old being bigger size-wise compared to Irving, he should be able to get to the hole. When the Celtics have to switch or collapse on a driving Fultz, it’s going to leave Covington and Redick wide open from long range or give Embiid open looks at the rim. Fultz was drafted for moments like this and there isn’t a better opportunity to showcase that than tonight.

Philadelphia and Boston will play on TNT tonight at 8 p.m. EST. The Sixers will then follow that up on Thursday night with their home opener against the Chicago Bulls which is also on TNT.